Saliba injury return headlined Arsenal's team news in Prague. William Saliba was included in a matchday squad for the first time this season and remained an unused substitute following his back injury. Arsenal beat Slavia Prague 2-1 at the Fortuna Arena and moved up to third in the Champions League league phase table.
Saliba injury return adds a defensive option
Saliba's availability gives Mikel Arteta a further central defender for the fixtures ahead. He did not play. His presence on the bench was the only change to Arsenal's defensive resources on the night.
The result was Arsenal's third win in four Champions League games and kept their unbeaten start to the competition intact. The Gunners were runners-up last term.
Two goals in a one-sided first half
Arteta made six changes from Sunday's 1-0 win over Liverpool. Arsenal scored the opener when Noni Madueke finished coolly after Viktor Gyokeres put him through on goal. Gyokeres added the second with a curling finish after combining with Mikel Merino.
Arsenal missed chances to extend the lead before the break. Slavia had taken one shot before half-time. The gap stayed at two.
Slavia's shape change turns the second half
Slavia switched from a back four to a back three. The change allowed the hosts to commit more bodies forward. They took 17 shots in the second half.
David Raya made several saves and pushed an Oskar Kubiak header against the post shortly before the goal. Gabriel Magalhaes cleared off the line. Wiktor Nowak scored from close range late to set up a nervous finale.
Analysis: Gyokeres finding form
Gyokeres did not score in his first 10 appearances of the season for Arsenal. He has two in his last three, following his goal in the Carabao Cup tie against Fleetwood Town last week.
The analysis point is not the finish alone. Gyokeres played the pass around the corner that created Madueke's opener and linked play with his back to goal. He will need the same output against stronger opposition to displace Kai Havertz as Arteta's first-choice No 9.
The original report is from skysports.com.
